What Matters To You
by rholou
Summary: Aaron sees another side to Robert


So this is set last year, when they were still living at the Woolpack, before everything.

Written for Robert week on Tumblr, because I love a good prompt.

Based on the prompt for Monday (4th September) which is: write a romantic scene between your favourite Robert ship.

Hope this fits, not sure romance is my thing and it's probably OOC but it's what popped into my head.

"Brew?" Robert asked as he walked past where Aaron was sitting on the sofa in the back room.

"Yeah go on then" Aaron answered without looking up from the magazine he was reading. He could hear Robert pottering around in the kitchen and then the unmistakable sound of something smashing.

"Shit" Robert said looking down at the remains of a mug on the floor.

"Careful, don't cut yourself" Aaron said to him as he saw him bend to pick the pieces up with his hands. "Hold on a sec, I'll grab the dustpan" he went over and grabbed it from under the sink. It was as he bent down to help that he noticed something.

"Is that my mug?" he frowned looking at the mess on the floor.

"Yeah sorry, I'll get you a new one" Robert answered, he was looking at the floor as he spoke so he didn't see the look on Aaron's face.

"Cus it's that easy" Aaron snapped at him.

"Well yeah" Robert said still not really picking up on Aaron's mood. "Loads of shops sell them, it's not going to be hard to replace" he said glibly.

"Well this one will" Aaron picked up one of the larger pieces and staring at it sadly.

"It's jut a mug Aaron" Robert said but he was frowning now, finally picking up on Aaron's reaction.

"Jackson gave me that mug" Aaron continued to look at the piece in his hand.

"Oh" Robert swallowed guiltily.

"Yeah. Oh" Aaron scowled. "Look I know you're not sentimental, but it meant something to me okay?"

"I'm sorry, I didn't realise" Robert defended himself. "It was an accident anyway".

"Yeah I guess" Aaron admitted because while he was upset that the mug was broken he knew Robert hadn't done it on purpose.

"Anyway who say's I'm not sentimental" Robert said as they finished cleaning up the rest of the mess.

"Uh, you for starters" Aaron told him watching as he tipped the dustpan in the bin. "And then me, closely followed by everyone else".

"Well maybe you don't know me as well as you think" Robert put the dustpan down and reached to pull him closer. Aaron gave him a questioning look but he didn't answer, instead he pulled him in for a kiss. He forgot all about his comment after that.

It was a few weeks later when Aaron came across the box. He'd been looking on the top of the wardrobe for his old football trophy. Liv had refused to believe he'd ever participated in any kind of sport at school, let alone well enough to win something and he was determined to prove her wrong. So he was wasting his lunch hour doing this. He was stood right up on his tiptoes reaching blindly with his hand when he'd brushed against the small cardboard box that was shoved right to the back. Curiosity overcame him and he grabbed something to stand on so he could reach whatever it was. Lifting it down he could see that it was a shoe box. It must belong to Robert as it wasn't his and no one else would put something up there. Why he would want to store shoes up there who knew.

But when he lifted the lid up it didn't contain any shoes, in fact it was almost empty, just a few random items in the bottom. He sat down on the bed to have a proper look. The first couple of things just had him wrinkling his brow in confusion. A receipt for Il Castello, a restaurant in Hotten, along with a movie ticket. It wasn't until he found the fridge magnet that he realised what he was looking at. He remembered buying it for Robert as a joke when they'd gone to Wales that time. Sifting back through the stuff in the box he saw them with different eyes now. He could attach meaning to every one of the items. The restaurant receipt was from their first official date, some posh place in Hotton that was way overpriced but Robert had insisted on. Funnily enough they had never gone back there, Aaron preferring more down to earth establishments. Staring at the box on his lap Aaron felt tears pricking at the back of his eyes.

The sound of footsteps on the stairs had him scrabbling to put the lid on and shoving the box back where he'd found it, he wasn't sure why other than that he didn't want Robert to think he was invading his privacy. He didn't need to worry though as after a small knock on the door Liv stuck her head in. She always knocked now after walking in on them one too many times in uncompromising positions.

"Did you find it then?" she asked grinning at him.

"Er what, what do you mean?" he said his voice a little hoarse with emotion, he hoped she didn't notice his wet eyes.

"The trophy" he'd forgotten he'd originally been looking for that.

"Oh er no, Mum must have put it somewhere else, or chucked it" he said getting up off the bed.

"Liar" she grinned at him. "Knew you'd never won anything. You owe me a fiver now".

"Who said anything about money?" Aaron grinned back, he pushed her gently out of his room and followed her out shutting the door behind him.

Robert stood in he kitchen looking in the cupboard trying to decide what to have for dinner when he felt a pair of arms circle around his waist and Aaron's slightly bristly chin nuzzle into the side of his neck.

"Don't bother" he said into his ear, his breath tickling him and sending all sorts of shivers down his spine. "We're going out for dinner".

Robert turned around so he was facing him, resting his hands on his waist and smiling at him. "We are, I didn't know that".

"Well now you do, I made a reservation earlier" Aaron grinned up at him.

"Where are we going?"

"Il Castello" Aaron said with a coy smile.

"Really?" Robert wasn't expecting that. "We haven't been there since..."

"I know" Aaron cut him off. "Thought it would be nice to go back there".

"Yeah it will, although" Robert slid his hands around to cup Aaron's arse and pull him closer. "I'd rather have desert here"

Aaron smirked at him.

"Well the reservation's not till eight, how about we go work up a bit of an appetite?" he quirked his eyebrow at him.

"You're on" Robert said grabbing his hand and pulling him towards the stairs.

He was pretty sure everyone in the pub must have heard them thundering up the stairs but he didn't care, all of a sudden he was really hungry.


End file.
